Europe’s largest free wi-fi zone set for London following ‘landmark’ O2 deal

The largest free wi-fi zone in Europe will be launched in central London, providing internet access to millions of people, after a landmark deal between mobile operator O2 and local boroughs.

Europe’s largest free wi-fi zone will be set up in central London this year

The deal between O2 and Westminster council and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea will allow residents and visitors to the capital to access free wi-fi on a host of mobile devices.

A statement from O2 said the deal, which would come at no cost to the taxpayer, was particularly important given the number of people expected to visit London during the summer for the Queenâs Diamond Jubilee and the Olympic Games.

The free wi-fi access will be made available âonce the Metro wireless network is installed on the street furnitureâ, the statement declaredÂ – adding work would being this month.

Cllr Philippa Roe, cabinet member for strategic finance at Westminster City Council said: âThis is a landmark achievement for Westminster; Westminster welcomes over a million tourists a day, is home to 250,000 residents, employs over half a million people and sees 4,000 business starts-ups each year.

âNext summerâs Olympic Games mean that London will be putting on the biggest show on earth and as Westminster has a starring role, visitors to London will easily be able to share their pictures and updates of the Olympic events across social networking sites.â

Derek McManus, chief operating officer for O2, meanwhile said the companyâs long-term goal was to expand the footprint of O2 wi-fi and provided internet connection at street level âwhere people need the network the mostâ.

âOur Â£500million annual network investment programme is focussed on integrating new layers of technology into the existing network to enable a seamless and sustained customer experience,â he added.

âWe are driven entirely by our customersâ needs and believe that services should be delivered in the best possible way, across multiple networks and supported by different technologies.â